2025 LUX MIDDLE SCHOOL SACRED POETRY CONTEST

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Catholic Literary Arts Announces the
2025 Winners of the
LUX Middle School Sacred Poetry Contest

Mr. Paxton Hager, an eighth-grade home-school student, was chosen among a field of competitive entries to be the 2025 LUX poet laureate for the independent Catholic schools and home-school communities.

Please see the text of his poem below.

The Spear’s Fall

May all our praise be to Jesus!
From whom all mercy flows!
We wailed, we watched, we waited,
And God, He gave to us: 

Two rivers, blood and water,
Two natures, God and man,
Two peoples, Jews and Gentiles,
Together, married and one.

One heart, swollen with sympathy,
One spear, pointed with pride,
Lord, may the flooding that rotting stick caused,
Cast it down Calvary’s side.

Still our Lord did not stop up His heart,
He let there no cursèd cork be,
Now, when we look at his likeness,
We pause, we ponder, we pray,
And as time will allow, not forget this:
Jesus, we trust in thee!

Catholic Literary Arts Announces the
2025 Winners of the
LUX Middle School Sacred Poetry Contest

Catholic Literary Arts is pleased to announce the outstanding students whose work has earned them the distinction of being winners in the LUX Middle School Sacred Poetry Contest for independent Catholic schools and homeschool communities in the Houston area.

Chosen from a wide field of entries, these poems display a high level of craftsmanship and a unique vision.

These poets, while young in their careers, have used their skill with words to express their love of Our Savior Jesus Christ as The Divine Mercy.

All the winners are to be congratulated and celebrated, as well as the other finalists who have reached high levels of artistry to reveal sacred truths.

Please register here to attend the Awards Ceremony on April 9, 2025, at St. Thomas University, Houston, Texas in Cullen Auditorium, nine a.m. Registration will help us plan a reception after the reading.

Sixth Grade Winners

  • First Place: Natalie Frazee, Holy House Academy

  • Second Place: Abel Skaria, Immaculate Heart of Mary Academy Homeschool

  • Third Place: Caroline Hough, Magnolia School

  • Honorable Mention: Luke Dorney, Holy House Academy; Raquel Berry, Magnolia School

Seventh Grade Winners

  • First Place: Isabel Chavez-Lujambio, Magnolia School

  • Second Place: Alonso Carillo Jimenez, Holy House Academy

  • Third Place: Marie-Josefa Ruhnke, Magnolia School

  • Honorable Mention: Quinn McConn, Magnolia School

Eighth Grade Winners

  • First Place: Paxton Hager, Homeschool

  • Second Place: Charlotte King, Magnolia School; Peter Ochoa, Western Academy

  • Third Place: Tillman Banks, Western Academy; Gabriel Aycock, Western Academy

  • Honorable Mention: Luke Mason, Western Adademy; Susan Powell, Magnolia School

The Finalists are…

Sixth Grade Finalists

  • Holy House Academy: Luke Dorney, Natalie Frazee

  • Immaculate Heart of Mary Academy Homeschool: Abel Skaria

  • Magnolia School: Raquel Berry, Caroline Hough

Seventh Grade Finalists

  • Holy House Academy: Alonso Carillo Jimenez

  • Homeschool: Ruby Mohr

  • Magnolia School: Isabel Chavez-Lujambio, Elynn Eastham, Marie-Josefa Ruhnke, Quinn McConn

Eighth Grade Finalists

  • Homeschool: Paxton Hager

  • Magnolia School: Annslee Harren, Hannah Isaac, Charlotte King, Lucia Martinez, Lauren Mull, Susan Powell

  • Western Academy: Gabriel Aycock, Tillman Banks, Luke Mason, Peter Ochoa